STEVE MCCLELLAN

Articles by Stephen All articles by Stephen

• Greatest Common Factory Names Courtney Tsitouris Chief Creative Officer in MAD on 02/12/2026
  

  The title is new at the agency but she succeeds John Trahar, GCF co-founder and former head of strategy and creative, who died in November.

• Belk Acquires Marketing Agency Sales Factory in MAD on 02/11/2026
  

  Sales Factory was founded in 1984 by George King and at the time of the sale his son Ged King was CEO. Clients include Cheannellock, Primo Water, General Electric, Tempur Sealy International, Reynolds, Fruit Of The Loom and WD-40.

• Kepler Taps Fila, OMD Vets For New Senior Roles in MAD on 02/11/2026
  

  Maxey previously served in senior marketing roles at Fila, where she was a Kepler client, as well as at Adidas and Gap; Berkowitz served at Spark Foundry and GroupM, prior to OMD.

• Cathay Pacific Taps WPP's Spafax For Retail Media in MAD on 02/11/2026
  

  The remit includes inflight entertainment, onboard publications, digital channels and experiential formats.

• Toronto-based Salt XC Acquires Media Shop Craft & Commerce in MAD on 02/11/2026
  

  C&C will become part of Salt Media and expand the agency's U.S. footprint to New York, Chicago and Orlando, FL.

• Dentsu Named Media, Creative AOR For i-Health in MAD on 02/10/2026
  

  The remit spans integrated strategy, media buying and execution, creative development, measurement and more.

• Carat Extends Arla Foods Remit For Two Years in MAD on 02/10/2026
  

  The renewed agreement covers markets including UK, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands.

• 2 Super Bowl Ads From NFL Tops In Creative Effectiveness in MAD on 02/09/2026
  

  That's according to an analysis from System1, which also found that AI ads for the most part fell flat.

• Reports: WPP's Next Restructuring Move Will Realign Creative Agencies in MAD on 02/09/2026
  

  The firm has recently restructured its media and production operations. Reports indicate that creative agencies are next with an announcement coming next month.

• Publicis Unveils New Sports-Focused Influencer Solution in MAD on 02/09/2026
  

  The offering, dubbed Influential Sports, is a joint effort from Publicis Sports and Influential, the influencer marketing firm that Publicis acquired in 2024 for a reported $500 million.

Comments by Stephen All comments by Stephen

• Interpublic's R/GA Taken Private By Truelink Capital by Steve McClellan (MAD on 03/03/2025)
  

  Good question, Scott. Not disclosed so far. 

• International Advertising Association Establishes North American Chapter by Richard Whitman (Mediapsssst on 03/17/2023)
  

  Michael, the IAA has had a New York chapter but has never had a North America chapter. This will encompass all of the US, Canada and Mexico, according to the group. Thank you for rasing the point as the article should have provided that background. 

• How Much Does Gun Advertising Contribute To All The Killing? by Richard Whitman (Mediapsssst on 06/01/2022)
  

  Steve, here is a link to the NYT story referrenced in the Whitman column. It does not show the videogame type ads described in the piece. It does link to a Daniel Defense ad featuring children. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/28/business/daniel-defense-rifle-texas-shooting-gun.html?searchResultPosition=1

• New Era At Accenture Interactive As Droga Is Poised To Take The Reins by Richard Whitman (Mediapsssst on 08/23/2021)
  

  Oops, thanks for pointing that out John.

• 4A's Creates Agency Review Participation Agreement by Richard Whitman (Mediapsssst on 08/24/2021)
  

  Hi Michael, I think you're right--an effort to make clients aware agencies have major issues with the current process, particularly when the client doesn't retain professional help with the search. No power per se. 

• Agency Review Activity Spikes After Quiet 2020 by Steve McClellan (MAD on 07/09/2021)
  

  Hi Michael, the $544 million figure is a net figure that does take into account losses. No doubt marketers are pressing for lower fees/prices whereever they can find them, with all suppliers. But the spike probably does reflect the fact that marketers put off reviews last year to deal with other more pressing COVID-related issues. 

• Imagine A Pro Sports Team Called The 'New York Jews' by Richard Whitman (Mediapsssst on 07/13/2020)
  

  Ed, I think the hockey team has a claim on the Capitals name there, although St. Louis had both a baseball Cardinals and a football Cardinals for some time. To your broader point, yeah, there are a lot options for non-offensive names. 

• Despite Rumors To The Contrary, Manly Men Drink Rose by Richard Whitman (Mediapsssst on 08/06/2017)
  

  Thanks Nicholas, as editor of this column I should have caught that. Appreciate that you did. 

• Brands Failing To Provide Quality Training In Media Skills by Steve McClellan (MAD on 10/28/2016)
  

  It is J.R., although it's usually not referred to as 'educatiing' and frequently it is people below the c suite. But often agencies meet with clients to 'brief' them on this or that issue. Which makes sense given that the former are supposed to be experts in the field. 

• Agencies React To Finger-Pointing, 4As Calls ANA Report Anonymous, One-Sided by Steve McClellan (MAD on 06/07/2016)
  

  Thanks for catching that Michael, now fixed.

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